Save the Child
by Rubi Dharuddha
Summary: The BAU team is called in to investigate a series of kidnappings,only one of which results in both an abduction and a note.Even with time running short,Reid realizes the young mother understands him and looks at intelligence differently than he does.R&R!
1. Chapter 1

**Chapter One  
**

**A/N: I do not own anything from Criminal Minds. The only characters that are mine are the ones the case is based around. Please do enjoy and bear with me as I attempt to become a profiler myself :0)  
**

* * *

**Elizabeth Stone once said: "****Making the decision to have a child - it's momentous. It is to decide forever to have your heart go walking outside your body."**

"J.J. what have we got today?" Agent Aaron Hotchner asked as he entered the conference room at BAU headquarters. His team was gathering around the table, excluding Reid who was pouring himself a much-needed cup of coffee. He twisted a small container of creamer into his cup and made for the table. He settled next to Morgan and Prentiss taking a satisfying sip of the hot liquid. J.J. passed out the familiar manila folders with their latest assignment. She flipped her own open at the head of the table and clicked the TV on behind her, a picture of a laughing little boy popped up onscreen.

"Aydan Wechsler, four years old, was taken from his grandparents' home in Abington Philadelphia a day ago." Morgan flipped through a few pages of the report before looking at J.J.

"Uh, isn't this a local law enforcement issue?" J.J. gave a hesitant nod.

"Normally, yes. An APB would be put out and the police would handle it, however, this is one of several kidnappings in the Abington area in the last four weeks. Only this time the kidnapper left a calling card."

"Ransom?" Gideon asked as he scanned the report. J.J. clicked a button on her remote a note popped up on the screen; the sentence on the single sheet of paper was made up of letters ripped from magazines.

**HIS MOTHER DOES NOT DESERVE WHAT SHE WAS GIVEN-- IF SHE WANTS HIM ALIVE SHE WILL FIX HER MISTAKE. **

"Mistake?" Reid asked as he read the sentence on the screen. J.J. dropped the remote on the table.

"The local sheriff's department doesn't know what this is implying, just that his mother is another Spencer." At the mention of his name Reid's attention snapped to J.J.

"Mmwhat?" J.J. smiled.

"You're our resident genius Spence. This girl is your twin."

"According to this," Prentiss said looking at the woman's biography. "Her last IQ test placed her at 188." Morgan gave a half smirk and slapped Reid on the back.

"Holy crap man, imagine what kinda superhuman smart babies you two could have." Reid shook his head, and quietly drank his coffee. Gideon looked up from his file.

"It says here the mother was born in 1986, if her son is four, she must have had him when she was—" J.J. interrupted him.

"Seventeen, Grace Wechsler, the mother of the missing child, just turned 21 this month. She's a business student, looking to open her own flower shop. She's finishing up her last few semesters in college now. She's going to meet with us at the police station when we arrive in Abington." Hotch folded his arms across his chest.

"Do we have any information on the Unsub?" J.J. shook her head.

"So far, no prints were found anywhere in the house or on the note. According to the police department, this Unsub's M/O is simple. Children aged three to four, male, usually with their grandparents. Every mother was very young. So far all of the victims have been found less than ten hours after their abduction." Morgan shook his head as he looked at the picture of the little boy.

"Almost sounds like the Unsub was looking for a particular child. Kept picking kids at random. Must have found the right one."

"Looks like we need to get moving." Gideon said, standing and heading for the door, the rest of the team following suit and preparing for a departure to Philadelphia.

It was time to save a little boy.


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter Two**

The travel time in the jet was spent discussing possible motives and psychology behind the Unsub's actions. The team was dispersed through the plane's cabin; Gideon and Hotch were pacing the aisle while bouncing ideas off of their colleagues. Pictures of the previous kidnapped children were spread out across a table, five, tiny, smiling faces looked back. Reid picked up the picture of the latest victim, the little boy grinned back at him, dark hair and green eyes carefree with youth. As he studied the photo, Reid felt a sense of urgency, a deep desire to help find this boy and make sure of his safety. As if she could read his thoughts, J.J. sighed and set her file on the case down.

"Someone so small shouldn't have to deal with such a traumatic event." She said quietly as she sipped coffee. Reid realized he wasn't the only one who was affected by these children and their abductions. Hotch for example. As a father of a little boy, these sorts of cases affected him deeply. He could only imagine what sort of horrors could befall his own son if someone were to take him. Gideon was a fatherly figure for everyone on the team; he didn't sympathize with anyone who hurt children. As for J.J., Prentiss and Morgan, it was a bad taste in their mouths knowing a child might be facing something most adults never would. Morgan was the first to break the silence, propped up against one of the plane's seats; he crossed arms against his chest, fingers tapping against his biceps.

"So why this kid? Why not one of the other five? Why bring them home after only a few hours if she were looking for specific children?" Gideon rubbed his chin, thinking through the information they had been piecing together since the start of the trip.

"I think we're looking at a mother. Between her late thirties to forties." Morgan's eyebrows lifted.

"A mother?" Reid looked up from the photograph of Aydan Wechsler, he had also read the latest information and agreed with Gideon whole-heartedly.

"All of the children abducted and later returned reported that their eyes were covered but they heard a woman's voice. She cleaned them up, made sure they were comfortable. She did everything a mother would do for her own children." Hotch shook his head as though trying to clear it.

"Are we looking at a woman who lost a child and is in denial?" Gideon gave a slight nod.

"Could be that, could be a woman that is unable to have a child of her own. In any case, we know she won't harm Aydan Wechsler unless provoked. The rage is directed at the mother not the child. In her eyes, Grace Wechsler has made some sort of mistake and until she corrects it, Aydan's not coming home.

* * *

_**Abington Philadelphia-- Local Police Department**_

The team was ushered into the local police department's headquarters, having quick introductions with the captain, Marilyn Russell.

"Thank you for coming. Normally we would handle these things on our own, but it looks like there's a bit more to it with these recent developments. I decided it was time to ask for help." Gideon smiled, shaking the captain's hand.

"It's our pleasure to help. This are Special Agents Aaron Hotchner, Derek Morgan, Emily Prentiss, Jennifer Jareau and Dr. Spencer Reid." Captain Russell smiled and shook hands with each.

"I've heard out of all of the BAU teams in service, yours is the best." Gideon smiled, wringing his hands in the usual way.

"Is there a space we can use to work?" The captain gestured to the back of the office.

"Of course, we have a conference room you can use." The team followed her, Gideon pulling Reid back to his side.

"Reid, I want you to talk with the mother. She's your age, your IQ level, you might be able to associate with her better. If she's anything like the mothers in other cases, we'll have to earn her trust, keep her cooperative." Reid nodded.

"Of course, I'll tell them to let me know when she gets here." Captain Russell pointed back towards the bullpen of as she waited for the team to file into the conference room, spreading their files onto the tables.

"She's already here Dr. Reid." Reid turned to face the bullpen, following the captain's direction. Two officers were talking with a young woman at the front of the office. Her back was turned to him, but he could tell from where he was that she was in great distress.

_"Who wouldn't be,"_ Reid thought to himself, _"her son's been taken away from her."_ He made his way across the office, letting the two officers know they could go.

"Ms. Wechsler?" he asked, the woman turned to him and Reid was immediately swept into her agony. The young woman looked her age, which of course reminded Reid that he was only three years older than her. Her hair was red like fire; it was pulled back into a half ponytail, but done in a hurry, considering her hair had fallen out in tendrils around an unnaturally pale face. Her green eyes, familiar, Reid realizing it was because they were the same green as her son's.

"Yes?" the young woman answered, her hands twisting around the hem of her shirt.

"I'm Dr. Spencer Reid. I'm an agent of the Behavioral Analysis Unit out of Quantico Virginia. I'd like to ask you a few questions." The woman nodded.

"I'll do whatever you need me to, but I've already answered the police's questions, I'm not sure how much help I'll be." Reid tried to reassure her with a smile, but the state she was in told him she wasn't looking to be reassured. He put a hand on her shoulder and directed her to a smaller conference room.

"Please, we'll try to do this as quickly as possible, I'm sure you'd like to get back to your family." The woman gave a slight nod and followed him into the room. She slid into a seat, her hands resting on the table, fingers entwined around one another. Reid sat down across from her, setting his files and bag on the table.

"Ms. Wechsler—" she interrupted him, giving him a small smile.

"Please, call me Grace—I've never been one for formality." Reid nodded, fumbling with his folders, he wasn't able to catch them before the photos of the other children and Aydan had slipped out of one of them. Grace saw the photo of her son, in a flash her face became drawn, her eyes closed for a moment and then she focused on the other pictures.

"The police suggested there had been other kidnappings but they wouldn't tell me anything," she stopped for a moment and looked at Reid. "Dr. Reid—"

"Call me Spencer, please." Grace smiled slightly again and nodded.

"Spencer-- _were_ there other kidnappings?" Reid hesitated for a moment and then gave an affirmative nod. Grace inhaled sharply, her fingers tightening on the photo of her son. Reid could feel her fear from across the table.

"There--- There were five other children taken in the last four weeks." Grace's hand flew to her mouth in absolute shock. Reid reached across the table, the movement instinctive, taking her hand.

"Grace, all five children were returned to their families within a few hours of being abducted, none of them were hurt." Grace looked at him sadly, the comment obviously not making her feel much better.

"Aydan's been missing for almost two days Dr. Reid." They were quiet for a moment, Reid unsure how to explain that her son most likely wouldn't be hurt. But then again, he wasn't sure of how true it would be, considering the Unsub had changed her routine when she had gotten to Aydan.

"Grace, I'm not sure what to say that will make you feel better, I have no idea how you're feeling really—I…" Grace gave a light squeeze to Reid's hand, which the master of all things brilliant had forgotten was still grasping hers, he released it and looked for something else to preoccupy his hands with. Grace tilted her head; green eyes full of intelligence and gentleness marred with sadness and exhaustion, met his. This woman was even younger than he was and she was experiencing something most parents would never deal with.

"Spencer… Maybe you should just ask me your questions, that way I don't waste anymore of the time you could be using to find my son." Reid nodded.

"Right." He pulled a notepad and pen out of his binder and prepared to take her answers.

"What happened the day your son was taken?" Grace took a deep breath and looked at her hands for a moment. She answered, her words sounded as though she had said it many times before.

"I had classes from seven thirty until noon. My mother is a homemaker so usually I leave Aydan with her and come pick him up after work study which is four days a week from one until five." She stopped and rubbed her forehead, her features betraying her fatigue, she continued, her hand still kneading at her forehead.

"I was heading to the office I work at on campus, when my mother called me and told me Aydan had been taken. She told me she had let Aydan play in the sand box in the backyard. She was expecting a call from my father and stepped inside to get the phone. When she got back he was gone." Reid wrote this information on his notepad, while doing so, he continued his questioning.

"Have you or anyone in your family received any strange messages lately. Phone calls, notes, anything that might indicate someone had malicious feelings toward you?" Grace shook her head, her arms crossing across her chest in a hugging motion.

"Aside from the note my mother found in the sand box, no. I usually keep to myself on campus and my parents live in a nice neighborhood… As far as I know, I don't have any enemies."

"You had your son at a young age _and_ you're raising him on your own?" Grace nodded.

"When I told Aydan's father I was pregnant—it didn't particularly matter to him. I finished my high school career at home and I let him know when Aydan was born, but he never responded. As far as I'm concerned Aydan doesn't have a father, and with some much-appreciated help from my parents, I've raised him by myself." Reid nodded as he wrote.

"So you never attempted to involve the father with the boy after his birth?" Grace's mouth flipped into a sarcastic smirk.

"Look, I realize it was stupid of me to get pregnant at seventeen." Reid looked up, afraid that he had somehow offended her.

"I didn't mean to make you think I thought—" Grace held up her hand to stop him from apologizing.

"Dr. Reid, you'd think," Grace said as she stood and started to pace around the room, "with an 188 IQ that I would have been smarter than I was when it came to sex. I wasn't." her lips twisted into a wry smile, "having my son at the age I did was hard enough, making a guy that wasn't even interested in _me_ much less the son he helped create, take responsibility for his actions was damn near impossible. After he ignored my calls when Aydan was born, I gave up and four years later I'm not **at all** sorry he wasn't involved." Reid looked up, pen tapping against the paper under his hand.

"So, aside from your parents, no one from the father's side of the family was aware of your son?" Grace shook her head no and looked out the window of the room into the bullpen of the police department.

"My parents tried to talk to Ben's, Aydan's father, parents; but his mother kept insisting I was trying to trap her son and the baby wasn't his. She swore she'd find a way to ruin our lives if we tried to get Ben involved." Reid started to ask another question when the door of the room was pushed open. J.J. stuck her head in, her look grim.

"Ms. Wechsler--- Your parents have just received another note." Reid's eyes snapped to Grace's face. Her already pale skin lost another shade of color, her emotional response about her son's father had drained away to reveal the absolute agony she was feeling over her little boy's abduction. Her hands ripped at her shirt hem again as she swallowed, looking for the words to her questions.

"W-wwhat did it say?" J.J. entered the room and handed a copy of the note to both Reid and Grace. As he read it, his own response was overwhelming; he could only imagine Grace's. When he finished he looked back to Grace, the young woman's fear for her son even greater than before and understandably so. The note read:

**The boy is not my concern--- his mother ruins lives and must be stopped before it happens again. You will be contacted at 6 p.m. if the instructions given are not followed exactly the boy dies. Don't make me hurt him.**


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter Three**

Grace set the note down and without another word, left the room. J.J. looked at Reid with concerned eyes.

"You should make sure she stays calm Spence, she's going to be susceptible to any number of emotions, they might---" Reid interrupted,

"Throw her over the edge, I know…" J.J. gave a supportive smile and returned to the conference room in the back. Reid on the other hand, made his way into the bullpen, following Grace outside. When he reached her, he found her sitting on the steps of the department, knees tucked up under her chin, arms wrapped tightly around her legs. Reid slowly stepped down the stairs until he reached her. He sat next to her, silent.

Grace stared out across the parking lot. The sun was bright, a light breeze pulling at her already loose hair. The silence was deafening, and for a moment Reid felt they would remain silent like this. The moment passed when Grace spoke, her gaze still distant.

"I can't stand waiting like this, waiting for whoever took my baby to tell me what I have to do to get him back." Reid looked at her, he was a trained professional and yet he was finding it difficult to comfort this woman.

"Our profile is fairly indicative of a woman, a mother in fact. We're positive this means she won't hurt your son." Grace turned her head to look him in the eye.

"Can you guarantee that she won't hurt him?" Reid became quiet again; he _couldn't _guarantee his safety, no matter how much he wanted to.

"Grace… there's always a margin for error in profiling. We have very set guidelines with proven cases but—" Grace shifted her legs so she was facing him completely.

"Guidelines don't assure my son's safety Spencer." Before he could reply Grace's countenance changed completely. She was no longer fighting with herself to keep her emotions at bay. Her eyes filled with tears, Grace attempting to hide behind her hands.

"I'm sorry," she said as she wiped at her eyes harshly, "I hate it when I do this, I shouldn't be crying when I should be helping find Aydan." Reid reached out and rested a hand on her shoulder; he could feel the tremor rushing through her as she tried to control herself.

"Don't apologize Grace, if you bottle up what you're feeling—it won't help anyone." Grace looked away and gave a slight snort.

"I don't appear to be helping at all—I-I don't understand, how can someone do this to an innocent little boy." Reid shook his head, pulling his hand back from her shoulder to pick at a loose thread on his worn khakis.

"Sometimes it's a delusion, a person becomes so wrapped up in their own vendettas or fantasies they can't differentiate between right and wrong." Grace's eyes still wet from tears grew narrow, her range of emotion swinging from hopelessness to anger.

"According to these notes, this woman has a problem with _me_, she blames _me_ for some reason, and instead of coming after _me_ she abducted my son, she's got control of me through him, it's _infuriating_! What kind of person does that?" Reid gave her a half smile; he knew it wouldn't make a difference.

"A very disturbed person." Grace shook her head at his attempt to lighten the mood; it was just unfortunate that it wasn't a mood that could be lightened with jokes pertaining to someone's mental stability. Especially when that person was holding her son hostage.

"Thank you." Grace said softly, meeting Reid's gaze.

"For what?" he asked, knowing he had failed to make her feel any different about the situation.

"For understanding. So far, you've been the only one that I've felt comfortable showing how I truly feel. With the police, I'm afraid I'll say something wrong and they'll stop looking for the kidnapper-- with my parents I have to tread lightly—my mom feels responsible for Aydan's kidnapping… I haven't had a moment to be a mother and be afraid my little boy won't be coming home." She said, the thought of finding her son dead clearly passing through her head.

"Well, my job is to help find the person who did this, to catch them at their own game. I—appreciate your situation a little more than most." He said this with the utmost honesty. Having been abducted a few months before, he truly did understand the fear that went along with not knowing if one's life was going to be cut short or not. That fear had stayed with him since his rescue, nightmares and flashbacks dogging him wherever he went. Grace smiled, Reid knowing it would have been one of her most attractive features had she not been troubled with her son's disappearance.

"Well, thank you anyway." In a move that shocked Reid, Grace leaned across the space between them and hugged him, her arms wrapping around his shoulders and tightening. Reid was so taken aback he didn't know how to respond. After a moment he lifted his arms and hugged her back. It wasn't the first time he had been taken by surprise by a woman; a certain actress from his past came to mind. However, he found himself completely oblivious as to how to react. After a few seconds of discomfort, he found returning the gesture had become easier, he even began to enjoy giving comfort to someone, to her. They stayed like this until an older couple making their way up the steps of the police department caught Grace's attention.

"My parents." she said releasing Reid from her grasp. He leaned back and observed them, as they got closer. A tall man with dark hair, peppered with gray was holding the hand of the woman next to him. The woman had red hair just like Grace's, though hers was graying, alluding to her age. The woman was openly distraught, her face one of someone who blamed themselves for misfortune.

This was obviously Grace's mother.

The two stood to meet them as they got to the top of the steps. Grace rushed to them and was caught up in a tangle of arms as they held each other. Grace's mother pulled back, her eyes running mascara as her tears spilled over.

"We called the station as soon as we found the note, to let them know what it said." Grace wiped away the tears and black streaks on her mother's face, comforting her with a tight hug. The woman was inconsolable though, the guilt of her grandson being abducted while she watched him weighing heavily.

"I'd like you meet one of the special agents the FBI sent to help with Aydan's case." Grace said as she ushered her parents towards him.

"Mom, Dad, this is Dr. Spencer Reid, he's a member of the behavioral analysis unit," Reid immediately went to take the hand of Grace's father as the man offered it to him. "Spencer, this is my father Carl and my mother Katherine Wechsler." Reid shook hands with them both, retreating a few steps back to give the family space. Mrs. Wechsler looked at Reid pointedly, even with the recent loss of her grandson; Reid was reminded of his own mother, before the degradation of her mental health. He never could lie to her, and he was pretty sure he wouldn't be able to with this woman.

"Behavioral analysis—does that mean you can find the person who took little Aydan?" Reid stuttered with his answer a bit, trying to find a good way to say yes but let them know he couldn't tell the future.

"W-we're confident we have given an accurate profile and that the kidnapper has a plan that doesn't include harming your grandson." The woman eyed him, not unkindly, but very wary of putting the life of her grandchild in his hands. Grace took the silence as a sign to move into the office. She motioned her parents ahead of her, walking beside Reid. As they entered the building he felt Grace's hand slide into his. He looked at her, realizing she had finally relaxed around him. Her trust in him had come full circle, even in the short amount of time they had known one another.

It was the best news he had gotten so far.

Apparently that wasn't all. As Grace, her parents and Reid entered the chaos of the department once more, Gideon pushed passed several officers in his way, walking quickly to their little troop.

"Miss Wechsler, we're going to need your assistance." Grace let go of Reid's hand and met Gideon halfway.

"Of course, whatever you need." She followed Gideon's direction and disappeared into the conference room, her parents rushing after her. Reid drew up beside Gideon, his face questioning.

"What's going on?" Gideon met that questioning look with one of hard determination and hope.

"We may have found something."


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter Four**

**A/N: So this chapter is a little a longer than the rest, but I think you'll find it's more informative then the rest. Please read on and enjoy :0)  
**

* * *

When the group entered the conference room they were met with a computer set up, a link to Garcia open on the screen. Beside the web cam link there was an article open with a picture attached to it.

"I'll call you if I find anything more." Garcia said as she signed off. It appeared Gideon and the other members of the team were onto something. Gideon caught up to Grace and turned to her after taking a brief look at the article.

"Miss Wechsler, our agents have exhausted a number of possibilities of who may have taken your son." Reid stepped forward as he heard this, hand to his mouth as he thought about what he and Grace had discussed.

"Actually Gideon, Grace answered a few of my questions about Aydan's father. According to her, the mother threatened to 'ruin her life' if she attempted to get him to take responsibility." Grace's mother nodded vigorously.

"It's true, we tried to have both families sit down and talk it through, but that woman was vile. She accused Grace of trying to trap her idiot son with the baby—I should have told her when I had the chance if her son had been brought up right, he wouldn't have taken advantage of my daughter." She said, livid about the past. Grace on the other hand sighed, looking over her shoulder to her mother.

"Mom, we've been over this—it was consensual." Apparently this had been a matter of dispute for the last four years. Her mother shook her head annoyed by her daughter's reply.

"Grace, that boy was looking for a naïve girl to take advantage of—he _used_ you." Gideon raised his hands up to stop the two before it became a family argument.

"Agents Morgan and Prentiss _did_ talk to Mrs. Fredrickson this afternoon and we do not believe her to be the abductor." Grace looked at Gideon pointedly, uncannily like her mother.

"How can you be sure?" Morgan straightened from the counter he was leaning against.

"Prentiss and I went to her residence this afternoon, we talked with her and determined she had no desire to take your son." He said, Grace's mother giving an unbelieving sigh at his words.

"Because she or her family would _ever_ take responsibility of something they've done." She replied angrily, Morgan conceded that point but still defending the interview.

"I can understand your skepticism ma'me, but the woman honestly had no idea what was going on. She was genuinely surprised." Katherine Wechsler was still not convinced. No matter what her daughter said, she wouldn't put it passed the woman in attempting to hurt her grandson.

"What makes you so sure? Your behavioral analysis?" She asked. Morgan nodded.

"There are many indicators in a person's behavior, both physical and psychological that allow us to tell if they're even capable of the crime we're investigating." Katherine nodded with a cynical smile.

"And, how do you know this is true of Helen Fredrickson?" Morgan looked at Gideon who gave the go ahead to tell them what they had discovered.

_**Two Hours Earlier….**_

Morgan and Prentiss knocked on the door of Helen Fredrickson, mother of Benjamin Fredrickson, the father of the missing child, whether he accepted that fact or not. The blonde woman came to the door, opening it slowly. Morgan pulled out his badge, the FBI I.D. making the woman's eyes go wide.

"Mrs. Fredrickson?" The woman eyed the badge warily before answering. Finally she looked Morgan in the eye.

"Yeah?"

" I'm Special Agent Derek Morgan this is Special Agent Emily Prentiss, we're with the Behavioral Analysis Unit out of Quantico. We'd like to ask you a few questions about your grandson." The woman gave Morgan a puzzled look.

"_Grandson_? What grandson?" Morgan looked to Prentiss who gave a mystified shrug. Morgan looked back to the woman who was still looking at him now somewhat annoyed.

"Ma'me can we come in for a moment?" Mrs. Fredrickson looked between the two agents and gave an indifferent wave with her hand and walked back into the living room of her house. Morgan and Prentiss followed her in and watched as she collapsed gracelessly onto her couch and began the process of knocking back a tall glass of something obviously alcoholic. Neither agent was very impressed, after a moment the woman looked up and gave them a bloodshot eyeballing.

"So what's the FBI doing on my doorstep and what do you mean by grandson?" Prentiss took out a notebook, even though she wasn't expecting to get much from the woman since she was well on her way to being too drunk to help.

"Ma'me, do you remember a young woman by the name of Grace Wechsler?" Mrs. Fredrickson gave a booze filled laugh, full of spite.

"What's that little whore accusing my son of _now_? Did she get knocked up again and get the FBI to track him down?" Morgan had to make an effort to hide his disgust of this woman's obvious issues. He could tell from her breath (which he could smell from across the room) and the state of her home (which didn't appear to have been cleaned for quite some time) that she hadn't put a lot of thought into anything that didn't come in a bottle. Her attitude came partially from the alcohol and partially from some deep-seated hate of, well, everyone.

"Mrs. Fredrickson, Grace Wechsler's son, who she claims is your son's child—" Mrs. Fredrickson lifted her glass, interrupting Morgan in the middle of his sentence. Something Morgan didn't appreciate, from anyone.

"She _claims_ he's Ben's son. That little brat of hers could be anyone's. She was jealous of Ben's popularity, I bet she'd do anything to bring him down." Morgan took a deep breath, calming himself before answering. It was times like these he wished J.J. had come with him; she had the patience of an angel and the skills to cover up her feelings when faced with particularly annoying people.

"Mrs. Fredrickson, if you'd let me finish, whatever you may believe, Grace Wechsler's little boy was kidnapped from his grandparent's home almost two days ago." The woman looked up from her drink, lips pursed in phony concern. She was thoroughly uncaring about the situation.

"And? What does it have to do with me?" she asked, taking another swig of her beverage. Morgan had to bite his lip and look to Prentiss for help. She didn't appear to have anymore desire to interact with this woman then he did. Finally she answered the woman's question as best she could without giving away her disdain.

"Mrs. Fredrickson, when we spoke to Grace and her family, she told us when she attempted to tell your son about her pregnancy… You threatened to ruin her life if she tried again." She said, seeing the change in the woman's countenance. Mrs. Fredrickson sat up from the couch, a little shaky from her daily drinking, setting her glass down on the table with a loud thud.

"You think **I** had something to do with her kid's disappearance?" Morgan put his hands up to calm her. He didn't really want to have to deal with a woman who was hysterical _and_ drunk.

"It's procedure ma'me. We look at every possible lead and find a way to either disprove them or…" he stopped, looking for the right word. Mrs. Fredrickson didn't wait for it.

"Or find someone to blame, right?" she stood up quickly from the couch, realizing her mistake too late when her head began to throb, forcing her to put a hand to her forehead as though that would make it better. She crossed the short space between her and Morgan, getting into his face. A painful experience for the tough agent, as she annoyed him and her breath was rancid with alcohol.

"Well go ahead and search," she said waving her arms around, indicating her house. "You won't find any bastard kid locked away somewhere. You can show yourself out when you're done planting evidence." With that she weaved her way to the stairs, pulling herself up by the railing. Morgan and Prentiss stood in silence until they heard the door of a bedroom click shut. At the sound Morgan looked at Prentiss.

"Looks like she gave us permission to search the premises and I'll be damned if I disappoint her."

_**Present…**_

"As you can see, we searched the house and found no sign of the boy, as well as the fact that her personality is hostile, including her history as an alcoholic making her an unlikely suspect." Prentiss stated as the two finished sharing their experience at the Fredrickson household. Mrs. Wechsler tried to digest what they were saying but couldn't.

"Why?" she asked, still not convinced that Mrs. Fredrickson was innocent.

"Our profile shows the kidnapper to be a motherly figure, one that would go to great lengths to care for your son. Mrs. Fredrickson doesn't show any of those traits. She couldn't have taken him." Prentiss explained.

"It's understandable why her son found a college on completely different coast." Morgan added in a somewhat still peeved mood. Grace shook her head.

"She was harsh when we tried to get her to see Ben was Aydan's father, but I don't remember her being a drunk." Gideon rubbed his hands together in what could only be said was Gideon-fashion.

"Some people are good at hiding their problems well, at least for a time. Whether she is or not isn't really a concern since we've proven she isn't the Unsub." Grace accepted that answer and gestured towards the computer.

"So if Mrs. Fredrickson is no longer on the list, what is it you need me to look at?" Gideon leaned over the computer and enlarged the picture Garcia had found.

"We need you to tell us what you know about _this_ woman." He answered, pointing at a woman standing next to Grace in the photo. Grace leaned over the computer and took a moment to figure out who she was looking at. After a few seconds she straightened and looked at Gideon.

"Uhhm, that's Shara Thomas, she was a senior at the university… She was in all of my business classes last year. This picture was taken after one of our class projects was sent to a state-wide fair." Reid moved in to take a look at the woman.

"She was in all of your classes?" Grace looked at him and nodded.

"Why? Is that important?" Reid's face went into smart mode as he thought about this new tidbit of information.

"Typically in university settings, having more than one class with students of different years is rare." Gideon took these details and formulated his own questions.

"Did you speculate about this at all? Did it seem odd to you that you had several classes with her?" he asked the young mother. Grace thought for a second and gave him a nod.

"I thought it was strange, since she was the only one I recognized from every class. I just assumed it was a coincidence, considering I was taking classes quite a bit ahead of my year." Reid looked at Gideon; it appeared they were having the same thought. Gideon gestured to Reid to go ahead and question. The young genius did so, looking at Grace, attempting to be sensitive to her situation.

"Did this woman's attitude towards you ever change or appear to become hostile? Anything that might cause her to take your son?" Grace was quiet for a moment.

"I think that might be difficult for her to do Spencer." Reid's eyebrows drew together, questioning.

"Why?" he asked. Grace rubbed her forehead and then put her hands on her hips.

"Because she committed suicide a week after finals last year." The silence in the room could have caused a mouse to become self-conscious. Gideon blew a rush of air out of his mouth as he considered what this meant.

"Did you have any contact with her _before_ she took her life?" Grace's eyes moved across the room as everyone expected her to pull memories from a year ago out of her head. A second later her face darkened as she finally remembered something.

"Um, a few days after final grades were sent out I ran into her at the grocery store. She came over and started yelling at me right there in the aisle." She wrapped her arms around her stomach as she thought about it.

"She kept telling me that I must be so happy that not only do I have the brains and the highest grades, I can get knocked up and no one thinks less of me… which isn't true, but regardless, she was livid with me." Reid crossed his arms, profiling a dead woman was strange, but there was a first for everything.

"Obviously she was obsessive about grades, a desire to be better than everyone else." Grace nodded slowly.

"That sounds like Shara. I don't know how she found out what my grades were, but she must have, otherwise I don't know why she would have even talked to me."Gideon's brow furrowed as he thought out loud.

"Is it possible she had connections to people with that kind of access? Used it to see what others had earned and use it against them?" Grace shrugged, unsure about it herself.

"I'm not sure, but I did hear a story about her from one of her high school classmates. He said she hurt the boy who beat her for the honor of Valedictorian. I don't know if it's true or not, but according to this guy, she broke his nose in three places." Morgan shook his head in disbelief.

"How come you didn't share this with us before?" Reid shot a look at Morgan as he asked this, the look a little bit more annoyed than someone in his position needed to be. Ever since he had gotten to know her earlier, he had felt a surge of need to protect Grace, and the tone of Morgan's voice had brought that need to the surface.

"Her son's been taken man, you don't need to be so harsh with her." He said in a very soft but serious voice. Morgan lifted an eyebrow at Reid's somewhat unexpected interjection. Grace on the other hand answered with a truly parental response.

"Look, Agent Morgan, I'm sure _someone_ on your team is a parent and understands how it feels to be in the middle of a store when their child starts having a temper tantrum—Aydan was so upset by Shara yelling at me, he started to cry. I didn't think I was going to be able to finish my grocery shopping. The whole exchange just got pushed to the back of my mind." Gideon nodded and guided the group into a new direction of thinking.

"So, you had this run in with Shara Thomas before she died," he started, "is there any reason to believe she may have shared her concerns with a family member?" Grace shook her head, not knowing. She was feeling utterly useless and even more fearful for her son's life. Hotch, who had been quiet all of this time, flipped his phone open and called Garcia up once more.

"Garcia, I need a list of family members and their locations, especially the parents, of Shara Thomas. We need to know if any of them live in the Abington area." He grabbed a piece of paper and wrote down the information Garcia was relaying. As he was doing so Grace looked at Reid.

"Spencer, what's going on? How did your team know about Shara? Why is Agent Hotchner looking for her family?" Reid bombarded with questions and a desire to consult with the others about what they had just discovered about the Unsub, pulled Grace aside to explain.

"The picture most likely came up when our specialist was looking for anything that might help us in our investigation. Looking at the picture, one can see Shara Thomas' body language is very rigid, while her eyes are on _you_ rather than the camera. This implies that she was focused on you for some reason." Grace took this in, her anxiety over the situation growing. She wanted to know more though, to try and help as best she could to understand what the team was looking for. Reid continued at Grace's look of desperation.

"We're looking into the whereabouts of her family because our Unsub's profile indicates a mother took Aydan." The realization of what that meant hit Grace like a brick. Her eyes that had been focused on the tile floor lifted to meet Reid's.

"You're saying that Shara's mother might have taken him, aren't you." Reid was loathe to cause her anymore worry, but he couldn't lie to her. Even if he tried, he knew she would figure it out and the last thing he wanted was for her to think he was trying to misdirect her. Her tired eyes were begging him to tell her, to let her know what they knew about the whereabouts of her son.

"Yes… It's a very strong possibility that her mother has taken a personal vendetta against you. She may even be blaming you for her daughter's suicide." Grace's eyes widened at his words.

"She blames _me_?" she asked incredulously. Reid gave a slight nod, very aware, but hoping not, that what he was telling her might cause her to do something rash.

"It's possible—it's also possible that the obsessive need Shara Thomas felt for her grades and perfection in her schooling stems from a parent. Sometimes it's a mental disorder that no one sees because it just looks like they're an overachiever. Her mother may have the same instabilities but with a different motive." He said, trying very hard not to disturb her further. Grace shook her head in complete shock. As she did another thought came to her. She looked at Reid, her head tilted questioningly.

"But, if her mother was coming after me specifically, why would she take all those other children?" Reid thought about that, searching for an answer.

"There could be any number of reasons as to why. The most likely one is, because she's never seen you or Aydan personally, it took her several tries to get it right." At this point Gideon came over after speaking to Hotch.

"That's exactly what happened. According to Garcia, the article she found was archived two weeks after publication, the only way to get it is to check it out from the university library. According to records from the university, it was checked out last week, the last of the other children were taken the day before then. The record shows Donna Thomas was the person who took the article, once she got your name, it was a simple matter of tracking down where your son was going to be during the day." Grace was quiet after the explanation of how her son was found. She didn't know what to say, Reid could see that and in a move he normally would never have made, he took her hand reassuringly in his. Grace looked at him in surprise, not expecting something like that from him. She gave him a look of gratefulness, but before she could relax a phone rang within the room.

Every Agent and civilian looked at their watches and was shocked to see that it was six o'clock. The time Donna Thomas had told them she would call with instructions.

"If that's her, why is she calling here?" Carl Wechsler asked as he crossed the floor to his daughter whose skin had turned a sickly white color. J.J. was already on the phone with Garcia telling her to tap the phone line. Morgan explained the reasoning behind the woman's actions.

"In every note left, she made sure to use words that suggested an audience would be seeing it. She was expecting you and your family to come to the police, she _wants_ them to know she has the boy and that she's in control." Grace grasped Reid's hand tightly, she obviously didn't want him letting go, while her parents held her from her other side. He could feel her shaking as Gideon leaned over the phone. He looked at Grace, asking her if she was ready. She nodded and Gideon pressed talk.

"H-h-hello?" Grace asked, trying to force her voice to stop shaking.

"Hello Grace," came a cold voice from the other end of the phone, "ready to follow my instructions?" Grace's heart was beating so loudly she could hardly hear over it. She looked at Gideon for the answer and he nodded and mouthed to her to say the woman's name, hoping it would let the woman know they were aware of her identity.

"Y… Yes, I'm ready to follow your instructions Donna." The line was quiet and then a very icy chuckle was heard, sending shivers down Grace's spine.

"So, you and your little police friends know who I am… That's no concern to me, you would have found out sooner or later." The woman took a deep breath on her end of the phone and then continued.

"Your instructions are clear," she began, "you will come to the abandoned train station at the edge of town. If you want to see this adorable little boy you have again, you won't get cute and bring the police." Grace was having a hard time keeping the tears back.

"How—how do I know you haven't hurt him already, I want to hear his voice, let me speak to him." She demanded needing to know in some way that Aydan was all right. The woman made a mocking sigh and then agreed.

"Fine, but do **not** try to get smart. He's proven to be just as brilliant as his mother, hopefully someone will tell him that that's what got him here in the first place." The line went quiet again for a second and then a little voice could be heard.

"Mommy?"


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter Five**

Grace couldn't hide her feelings anymore, her grip on Reid's hand tightening. Her breathing became erratic, her chest rising and falling wildly as she tried to control her voice.

"Aydan? Baby, are you all right? Are you hurt at all?" the little boy's voice was scared and trembling.

"Mommy, where are you? I'm scared, the lady won't let me see." Grace leaned closer to the phone making a hushing sound in attempt to calm her son down. Her parents had turned to one another, Grace's mother in near hysterics as she heard her frightened grandson's voice.

"Aydan," Grace said as calmly as she could, trying to keep him from hearing the fear in her voice. The last thing she wanted was for her son to think she had no hope of finding him. "Aydan, sweetie, I need you to be brave, all right? The woman isn't going to hurt you, she's looking for me." Despite his situation the little boy, whether from his intelligence or a small person's common sense, he questioned this statement.

"She could call you mommy. That would be e-easier." Grace laughed through her tears, Aydan never ceased to amaze her.

"I know baby, I know." All of a sudden the sound of the phone switching hands could be heard.

"Aydan? Aydan!?" Grace cried, only the voice at the other end of the line was no longer her son.

"You have one hour Miss Wechsler, or your son dies." There was a click and the phone began to beep a disconnection. At the sound of the grating hi-pitched beeping, Grace nearly collapsed against the table. The strength she had tried to store up for her son was waning. Grace felt like this woman had a chokehold on her, suffocating her to her very soul. Because to Grace, Aydan was her soul. Reid saw her falling and immediately supported her. She put a hand to her heart, feeling it beat at her ribs like a bird in a cage. She allowed herself a brief moment; after it had passed she lifted her head and looked at Gideon, her eyes hard.

"Get her." She said, her voice harsh with abhorrence only someone in her situation could feel. Gideon could see that this woman had come to the end of her rope as many mother's before her had, but for some reason, in her eyes, he could tell that _unlike_ the other mothers, she had the ability to keep herself together. She had the ability to save her son.

"Miss Wechsler, we will do the best we can to get your son back—" Grace couldn't accept that. Before Gideon finished, her vigor had returned and she was making her way to the door. Reid was mystified by her sudden return and called her name.

"Grace, where are you going?" Grace stopped and turned back to the group of agents and her family.

"I'm going to find my son. This woman needs to be stopped, and now." Grace didn't wait for a reply and left the room. Reid turned back to Gideon looking for assistance in what he should do. Gideon could see the young agent was torn between what his job required of him and what his heart was telling him. One didn't need to be a profiler to see that, the genius wore his heart on his sleeve. He gave a nod settling the Reaid's concerns. In a flash the young man disappeared out into the crowded station, following the just as young mother.

Reid caught up with her as she started down the stairs towards the parking lot.

"Grace, wait!" he called, reaching for her arm, trying to stop her. Grace pulled away, turning towards him as she walked.

"No, Spencer. This Thomas woman didn't demand money or anything of value-- she wants _me_, and she's going to **get** me." She yelled. Her hands were shaking as she tried to dig through her purse, searching for her keys. Reid moved towards her, trying to calm her down.

"Grace, I understand how you feel." Grace looked up from her purse and shook her head.

"Spencer, I like you—a lot… But no, no you don't. Unless you've had your own child stolen from you, you can't possibly know how I feel." Reid closed his eyes for a moment, letting a sigh escape from his lips.

"Grace, believe me when I say, I _do_ understand. Not as a parent, but I've had my own share of experience dealing with abduction." Grace looked at him, her hands going still in her purse. She looked into his eyes and saw a vein of fear that was well hidden, but preaent, a vein that ran very deep. He didn't say anything, but Grace was on his level. She understood what Reid's eyes were saying.

"You understand… Because it happened to you." Reid took a deep breath; those memories he had been fighting to keep quiet were ripping their way to the surface once more. Grace saw this look and closed the gap between them, removing her hands from her purse. When she reached him they just looked at one another. Slowly, ever so slowly, Grace reached a hand out, touching Reid's face gently. Having never experienced intimate touch (unless, surprised by it) Reid froze, afraid he would do something wrong. Her touch was light, her eyes sympathetic, not with pity, but with understanding. He relaxed growing used to the feeling of her hand, wishing he could lean into her touch, _praying_ for a quick death to his incompetence in these matters.

'A few months ago… An Unsub of ours abducted me, he had his own mission to fulfill, just as the woman who took your son does." Grace continued too watch him as he spoke, realizing just how much he comprehended her situation.

"Spencer, I'm so sorry, I didn't realize." Reid shook his head, raising his hands to her shoulders to stop her.

"Grace, you didn't know. I'm not exactly wearing a sign that says 'I've been kidnapped'." Grace gave a halfhearted smile and preceded to do something neither of them had truly expected.

She kissed him.

He kissed back.

Had the situation been different, it would have been perfect. But, the situation was what it was and Grace remembered that. Pulling back from Reid she put a hand to her mouth.

"I'm—I'm sorry, I… I shouldn't be doing this now. My son's life is on the line… I need to go." Reid nodded.

"I know. We're coming with you." As he said this, the rest of the BAU team came out the department doors, heading for their respective cars. Gideon pulled open the passenger door of the car Hotch was driving. As he climbed in he looked at Reid through the open window.

"Reid, you go with Miss Wechsler, the rest of us will be right behind you." Reid nodded and followed Grace to her car, Grace fumbling with her keys in her rush to get going. Somehow she got the doors open and the two climbed in, Grace starting the engine and pulling out of the space before Reid barely got his door shut. She headed straight for the train station. They didn't talk for most of the ride until Grace felt she needed to clear up what had happened at the police station.

"Spencer—what I did back there was inappropriate. I shouldn't have forced myself on you like that." Reid looked at her, clearly puzzled.

"Grace, you didn't… It wasn't…" Flustered, Reid began thinking throwing himself out of the car would be a quick end to someone who couldn't speak when it mattered. Finally he got himself together. "I didn't think that was what you intended, in fact, with cases of great duress a person acts on emotions that don't seem appropriate to the situation. Especially if they have someone on whom they have found they can depend on, it's actually called—" Grace looked at him and shook her head.

"Please don't say Transference." Reid was surprised and looked at her as she drove.

"You know about Transference?" Grace gave a tight smile.

"I took a few Psychology courses. I thought it was an interesting topic, but that's not what caused me to kiss you Spencer… I truly wanted to…" she stopped, focusing on the road ahead of her. Reid on the other hand concentrating on what she had almost said. He didn't press her further. It didn't matter anyway, the train station had come into view, and the possibility of what could happen between them was not a priority. Grace pulled into the lot haphazardly and the two got out of the car. She looked at Reid for reassurance, which he gave in a small dose as he pulled his gun out. He attempted to move ahead of her but Grace stopped him.

"She's expecting _me_ Spencer. If you walk in with your gun raised, she might hurt Aydan." She said as the other BAU members pulled up. Gideon hopped out of his car. He joined the two as they argued.

"Grace, you're unarmed, the suspect most likely _is_. You go in there and who knows **what** could happen." Reid said stridently. Grace shook her head.

"My only concern is Aydan and his safety. I'll do what I have to." Gideon interjected as Reid tried to raise his concerns once more.

"Reid, the suspect is waiting for her, the kidnapper even made sure to tell her to leave law enforcement outside. If we send in people, guns blazing, we risk both the mother **and** the child being harmed." Hearing this, Reid knew it was true, but didn't want to accept it. Sending a defenseless woman into the belly of the beast was not what he felt was a good idea. Grace however, had been prepared for this the minute she had found out who had taken her little boy.

The team prepped Grace, knowing that their time was limited. The other agents told her what she needed to avoid doing so as not provoke the kidnapper, while giving her some basic profiler pointers in reading the woman. It was a lot to take in, but Grace did her best, itching to get into the building. Reid stood by as his fellow team members did these things, silent and still quite positive that Grace was walking into a trap and in a matter of seconds he would lose this woman.

Was it wrong of him to have this selfish desire to send _someone else_?

Finally as Grace started for the building, Reid looked at Gideon and Hotch.

"I can't let her do this alone." Hotch shook his head.

"We've given her a microphone, we'll hear everything they say and let the police intercede if it appears to get out of hand." Reid shook his head, thinking this seemed too reckless.

"Hotch, this situation is _already_ out of hand—that woman kidnapped Grace's child for a psychologically unstable reason. I feel I need to go with her." Hotch looked to Gideon for his advice, the older man watching Reid. Gideon nodded and Hotch waited a moment. Finally giving his blessing after what seemed an eternity. Reid shot off after Grace, holstering his weapon, but leaving the flap undone for easy access. Hopefully it wouldn't come to it, but if he had to fire, he was going to have as good an opportunity as any.

Grace's head whipped around in surprise as he caught up with her.

"Spencer, what are you doing?"

"Coming with you, what does it look like?" Grace shook her head. She wasn't going to allow this. She didn't care what government agency he was with.

"No, go back." Reid mirrored her gesture.

"Grace, I can help you. I can figure this woman out if I see and hear her. I might be able to find a way to get her to let Aydan go." Grace was desperate now.

"Spencer, first of all, she told me to come alone, I can't risk her hurting Aydan because I didn't follow that, and two, I can't ask you to risk your life, not for complete strangers." Spencer stopped Grace just outside the door of the station and forced her to look at him.

"Grace, in the last six hours, you've become less of a stranger to me than anyone I've known. I **want** to help because its both my job to figure people like this woman out, and because I've come to care for you. Maybe more than I'm supposed to, but nonetheless, I'm here. Please accept my help." Grace closed her eyes, knowing she didn't have much time.

"Fine. Let's go." And with that, the two pulled the doors of the station open.

They entered the confines of the building slowly, Reid with his hand hovering over the grip of his gun, Grace trying to find her son in the dark.

"I told you to come alone." Came the same cold voice from the phone. The two stopped dead in the middle of the train station lobby. The air was rank with the musk of rotting wood and rusting metals. The only light available was from the almost completely set sun. Reid attempted to make the first contact easier by introducing himself.

"My name is Dr. Spencer Reid. I'm a member of a behavior analysis team. I'm not a cop." The woman was quiet and then spat out a reply.

"Behavior analysis? What are you, some kind of shrink?" Reid looked at Grace trying to find a way to explain.

"No, I—I just study human behavior, I'm a psychiatrist. I'm a friend of Grace's." There wasn't another reply, which made Grace nervous.

"Donna, can you come out where we can see you and Aydan? I'd like to see my son." A snort came from the shadows and the woman laughed loudly.

"I bet you would. I bet you'd like to see your child again. Lucky you he's still alive." Finally they heard shuffling and a woman with mouse brown hair, skinny arms and a gun came into the light. In front of her was Aydan, eyes blindfolded, one of the woman's hands over his mouth, the other holding the gun to his head. Grace nearly cried out as she saw this, but restrained herself, knowing it wouldn't help Aydan to see her hysterical.

"Satisfied?" the woman sneered as she held the little boy back. Grace tried to move closer but was stopped dead in her tracks when the woman shoved the gun closer to Aydan's skull. Raising her hands Grace looked at Reid for help. From the two minutes they had been talking, he could see that the woman had had some form of psychotic break, her daughter's suicide probably the stressor that had sent her on her way to looking for Grace and her son.

"Ma'am, what do you hope to accomplish from kidnapping this little boy?" he asked, hoping to convince the woman what she was doing was wrong. Two bloodshot eyes turned on him and the woman's mouth quivered into a grimace.

"What do I hope to accomplish?" she hissed, "what I hope to accomplish is putting my daughter's soul to rest… To make the woman who forced her to take her own life to live what I've lived." Grace looked at the woman incredulously.

"You think I forced your daughter to take her life?" the gaze turned to Grace and the woman nodded.

"Thanks to you she felt she had nothing left to live for." Grace shook her head.

"Mrs. Thomas, your daughter was, a very intelligent woman, she knew things about business that I still have to learn myself. She didn't need to feel as though she had nothing left." The woman gave out a maniacal laugh and squeezed the boy tighter to her, causing him to cry out. Grace could barely stand the sound.

"My Shara prided herself on being the best—she _was_ the best, until she noticed the new girl in her class." The woman tried to wipe at her perspiring face with the shoulder of her shirt.

"'She's barely into her twenties mom', she said to me, 'she's already in senior classes and getting the highest grades in the class'… She thought she was doing something wrong, that you were a TEST." She said, her eyes blinking rapidly, which Reid realized was because she was trying to keep from crying. It seemed as long as he didn't make any sudden moves and give it away, she hadn't noticed he had a gun. Grace on the other hand, couldn't believe what she was hearing.

"Mrs. Thomas, she never came to me with any of these concerns… If I had known she felt that way, I would have done what I could to help her." This just made the woman angry and she tightened her grip on the boy again, her rage coursing through her.

"She didn't NEED your HELP!" she said angrily. "What she needed was for you to be out of the way, to keep you from ruining her life. If I had known, I would have done it for her." Grace closed her eyes, hoping she hadn't made a fatal mistake for her son. Then a thought came to her, opening her eyes she tried again, this time sure it would help her.

"I'm sure you would have Mrs. Thomas. You're a good mother." The woman was taken aback, and briefly she relaxed, her grip not as tight on Aydan.

"You think so?" she asked, her exhaustion evident as she became only slightly less tense. Grace nodded.

"I do think so… You wanted what was best for your child." The woman nodded, her mouth quivering.

"I tried so hard. I tried to make her see that she didn't need to be top of her class to be the best, but didn't listen, she just… killed herself." As the woman talked, both Reid and Grace felt they were making progress that perhaps she would let Aydan go. It didn't appear time had been on their side. From his vantage point Reid saw a pinpoint of red show up on the woman's chest. That pinpoint of red could only mean one thing.

SWAT teams had moved in and a great amount of shooting would follow.


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter Six**

**A/N: Thank you to all of my lovely readers/reviewers, I truly appreciate all of your kind words. I would like to say this ISN'T the last chapter. I do believe there is at least one more chapter that needs writing (What, you didn't think I'd leave you hanging did you?). So, please, continue to read on.  
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"Grace!" Reid yelled, pulling her down to the floor with him. As he did a shot rang out and the kidnapper was hit in the shoulder. She screamed, flinging the gun out and shooting in the general direction of the sniper. At the first sign of resistance the SWAT team moved in and started firing, the room was soon filled with eardrum bursting gunfire. Grace tried to get back up, moving towards Aydan and the kidnapper. Reid stopped her, grabbing her around the waist, pulling her back against him.

"Grace, no!" he yelled over the gunshots, Grace continued to struggle against his grip.

"Spencer, I have to get to him." She cried, still trying to pull away. Spencer held her tight, not letting her go. With his other hand he fumbled in his pocket and pulled his cell phone out, desperately typing in a number, looking for someone to hold the shooting back.

"Hotch! You have to get them to stop firing! She still has the boy, he could be caught in the crossfire!" from their spot on the floor, Reid could see the kidnapper had moved around the corner of a wall, only putting her head around the corner to shoot in any direction that looked like there was someone she could shoot, a few seconds later the shooting from SWAT side halted. Grace ceased her struggling as the gunfire was silenced, her body tense against Reid's arm. She let her head drop, her forehead resting on the cool floor. At least for now the shooting had stopped and Aydan could be heard crying, she could only pray that he wasn't hurt. Reid dropped his cell phone on the ground ahead of him and looked at Grace.

"Are you all right?" he asked, his gaze sweeping over her quickly, looking for any wounds. Grace lifted her head and looked at him with stony eyes.

"No."

They listened for a moment and heard the heavy breathing of the kidnapper, her wound apparently causing her severe pain. Finally the abductor poked her head around the wall once more, yelling at the two still on the floor.

"I _told_ you not to bring the cops! Do you WANT your son to die?" Reid stood slowly, his hands in the air. Grace not to miss any chance of getting Aydan back stood, following Reid's lead. Reid however, made the first move in conversation.

"Mrs. Thomas, I understand your loss, losing a child is like losing your soul, you never get it back." The woman gave a barking laugh that ended in a hiss of pain.

"How do you "understand"? How do you know what happens to your soul, when your child is gone… Unless…" she said, yanking the little boy out into the open, her eyes malicious.

"This one's yours too." Reid shook his head.

"No, no he's not my son. But, I know his mother." The kidnapper gave a sardonic smile.

"Oh yes, the child killer, you do realize that's what she is Mr. Behavioral Analyzer? A child killer." Reid shook his head.

"Mrs. Thomas, your daughter took her own life, she let her schooling control her, until it drove her to commit suicide." The woman shook her head violently,

"No… _That_ woman, _she _made my baby do what she did." Reid studied her from his position. He could see that her complexion was losing color, the wound in her shoulder bleeding profusely. He figured he wouldn't have to stall much longer.

"No she didn't—she didn't put the pill bottle in your daughter's hand, she didn't force her to swallow them." The woman grew angry with Reid, her rage redirected to him for the time being as he insulted the reason she was here.

"SHUT UP! YOU DON'T KNOW!! You aren't a parent, you don—don't know." Her words slowed and became somewhat slurred as her injured body took its toll. Her arms went limp, the hand that was on Aydan loosened and the little boy took the opportunity to push his blindfold up and run to his mother. Grace ran to meet him, catching him up in her arms. The woman in a last ditch attempt to finish what she started, lifted her weapon, pointing it at the little boy and his mother. Reid saw this and grabbed his gun out of the holster. Following all of the lessons he had been taught by Hotch, he pointed the gun at the woman, firing as soon as he had a clear shot.

It hit her in the chest, knocking her to the floor.

Grace clutched Aydan against her, keeping his head pressed against her chest, to keep him from seeing his kidnapper lying dead in a pool of her own blood.

"Don't look baby, just watch mommy." She murmured as they waited for some sing they could leave. In a matter of seconds they were surrounded by SWAT and the two were caught up in a hubbub of paramedics checking for injury and agents looking for a report as to what had happened. Reid had to fight most of them off in order to look for Grace. He found her a minute later, sitting on the bumper of an ambulance holding Aydan in her arms, rocking slowly back and forth, humming a tune to him. She had her face pressed into his hair, taking in the smell of his shampoo and the softness of his hair. These things she would never take for granted again, she only prayed that she would never see him in danger another time. Reid made his way over to her, hands pushed deep into his pockets. When he reached her, he was met with a smile, this time it was full and beautiful, her joy at having her son back, was evident. All Reid could say, was that it was truly marvelous to see it.

"I'd stand up," she said, "but he's sleeping." Reid smiled and put his hands up in understanding.

"Don't worry about me." He sat down next to her, taking care not to jostle the toddler. He looked at the little boy, nestled against his mother's chest, breathing softly as he slept. For a moment Reid was almost jealous at the boy's ability to sleep soundly after such an ordeal, something he still had issues with now. That jealousy was overcome by gladness that the boy was safe, that he was no longer facing a psychotic's deranged plans. Reid watched Grace's hand as she gently stroked Aydan's dark hair away from his forehead, the gentleness in her fingers a testament to her being a good mother. After a moment, Reid reached between the two of them, lifting her chin with his hand. She met his gaze looking at him quietly.

"He's lucky to have a mother like you." Grace looked down, a blush creeping across her cheeks.

"We were both lucky you and your team came to help us." She replied, lifting her head to meet his gaze again. The two looked at one another for a second longer, not moving, until Reid reached out a hand and gently brushed a lock of her red hair out of her eyes, leaning in to kiss her. Grace responded in kind, however, stopping less than an inch from his lips, she pulled back slightly. Reid's eyes popped open, moving to look at her questioningly.

"We're calling this a real kiss right? Not Transference or some other strange Behavioral Analysis Agent thing?" she asked, aware that Reid was well versed in the ways of mental conditions. Reid smiled and laughed softly.

"No, not Transference. Just two people who like one another." Grace grinned and leaned in again.

"Good. _That_ I can do."

They kissed, and _this_ time, it was the right time.


	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter Seven**

**A/N: Well folks, here we are. The end. It was hard writing the ending, believe me, and I'm still not satisfied with it, but if you guys are, I am too. Thank you all for reading and reviewing. It means a lot to me to get such wonderful feedback from people… Perhaps a sequel? Anyone have any ideas for our two lovebirds?**

**Well, regardless, sit back and enjoy the end.  
**

* * *

The next day was warm and bright; the street was quiet and picturesque. Outside, two black SUVs pulled up in front of a sweet, blue, Cape Cod style house, parking just off the curb. Grace stood on the lawn, waiting for the passengers to get out of their cars, hands behind her back. When they finally did, her smile grew as the BAU team crossed the grass towards her. She shook hands with all of them, her smile wide.

"Thank you for coming. The Captain Russell let us know you wouldn't be leaving until tomorrow, so we thought we'd invite you all for dinner." Gideon gave her a rare, but decidedly Gideon smile.

"We're honored for you to have asked us." What he didn't tell her is that he had already added Aydan to his notebook, the picture of the happy little boy among the many the team had saved. Grace started to say something, only to be stopped by a sudden disturbance at her side. Aydan stood there, arms wrapped around a teddy bear, one that looked as though fur were an optional dress code for a bear. One of his hands grasped at his mother's skirt, while her hand rested on his head. She smiled at the team once more.

"As you can see," she said laughing, " we have a lot to celebrate, so we'd thought we'd invite you to a barbeque. Please, tell my father what you would like. We have every cut of steak you can imagine, ribs, whatever you want, it's yours." Morgan smiled and gestured for J.J. and Prentiss to lead the way.

"Ladies first, but please, leave some prime rib for me." The two women walked passed him, shaking their heads. As J.J. came by her, she took Grace's hand and patted it.

"I'm so glad your son is safe Grace. We all are." Grace nodded.

"Thank you J.J. for everything." Hotch squatted next to Aydan and handed him a box.

"My son isn't big enough to play with one of these, but I've heard you're a brave little man." Aydan looked into the box his eyes growing big. Inside was a brand new Batman toy, shiny and new, waiting for someone to play with it. Aydan dropped his head back and looked up at his mother with a happiness only a child could exude.

"Batman Mommy!" Grace smiled and nodded.

"What do you say to Agent Hotchner?" The little gave a toothy grin to the agent and hugged the Batman to his chest, right next to the worn teddy bear.

"Thank you Agent Howtchnewr." He said butchering the agent's last name with a four year old's lisp. Hotch smiled and ruffled the little boy's hair.

"You're more than welcome Aydan." He and Gideon set off towards the backyard, Aydan following them, sad looking teddy bear, Batman and all. Grace gave a happy chuckle and turned back to Reid, only to be met with a single long stemmed rose. Grace gave a soft sigh of surprise and took the rose in her hands, inhaling its fragrance. Her eyes met Reid's and gave a shy smile.

"It's beautiful Spencer." Spencer shifted uncomfortable at his lack of finesse.

"Grace—Nothing could be more beautiful than you." He said, stating it as though it were a well known fact. Grace looked up from the rose as she admired it. This time a blush covered her cheeks, after a second she threw her arms around his neck, kissing him gently. From around the corner Morgan, Prentiss and J.J. watched. As Grace showed her appreciation Morgan put his hands up in the air as though he had scored a touchdown.

"That's what I'm talkin' about." Prentiss looked at him, her eyebrow raised in questioning.

"And, that is?" Morgan turned to the two women, giving them his best mega player smile.

"The rose, the words… _All_ mine ladies." J.J. snorted back a laugh, Prentiss following suit until the two were all out laughing at him. Morgan shook his head, taking their mocking laughter well.

"Oh laugh all you want," he said shaking his head and walking towards the rest of the group as they were preparing the food, "but you know Reid's intelligence dies with the ladies—with my help, those two will be married and makin' super-human smart babies in a few years." Prentiss rolled her eyes as she and J.J. followed still attempting to breathe after her laugh attack.

"Why a few years?" she said still laughing, looking at Prentiss with tear-filled eyes, "why not sooner if he's going to make Reid into a smooth talking lover boy?" they made their way to the table, leaving the two on the front lawn.

"I'm glad I got to see you before you left Spencer." Grace said softly against his ear as they hugged one another. Reid pulled back and smiled, touching her face with his hand lightly.

"I am too." They both turned their heads when Mrs. Wechsler called.

"Come on you two, supper's ready!" Grace waved at her mother and moved to go, holding her hand out to Reid. He took it and they walked to the backyard together.

* * *

The evening was one of friendship and laughter, the Wechsler family welcoming and thankful for the team's help in finding their lost child. Morgan, Gideon and Mr. Wechsler talked about football, arguing when someone made an outrageous statement about a certain team or player, but all in good fun. Mrs. Wechsler, Prentiss, and J.J. chatted about everything under the sun and even things _not_ under the sun. Spencer and Grace kept to themselves, getting to know one another and finding they were fans of many similar things. For instance, the conversation that was taking place between the two at the moment, was one that belonged in the Nerd Hall of Fame.

"Oh, how can you even _say_ that? _Return of the Jedi _was infinitely better than _Empire Strikes Back_!" Grace said popping a grape into her mouth and rolling her eyes. Reid shook his head and waved his finger in disagreement.

"Nononono… _Empire Strikes Back_ is obviously the pinnacle of the entire trilogy, for once, evil wins and good has to find another way to overcome it." Grace gave a sarcastic sniff at his answer.

"Oh, _yeah right_. You're only saying that because stuff gets blown up. That's why every guy who has **ever** seen the original three Star Wars says _Empire Strikes Back_ is the best." After saying this Grace looked down at Aydan who was sitting on her lap, playing with his teddy bear and new Batman. Unfortunately it appeared the teddy bear was Batman's latest nemesis as he was in a headlock, his teddy bear paws flailing as Batman kept him restrained.

"What do you think Aydan? Which is better, Mommy's choice or Spencer's?" Grace asked, giving her son a playful squeeze. The little boy didn't even look up from his toys as he answered.

"Mommy's." Grace gave threw her shoulders up and gave Reid a cute little "I win, you lose" look. Reid shook his head and called for a recount.

"Oh come on, that's not even a fair vote! Of course he would choose his mother's favorite!" Grace laughed with a false evil laugh, making Reid shake his head in defeat. At seeing her opponent's graceless loss, Grace leaned over and patted his shoulder.

"It's ok Spencer. I'm sure someone will agree with you, they just require testosterone to do it." Reid conceded but didn't give up and gave her a sly look.

"Well let me ask you this, out of the three most recent installments, which one is your favorite?" Grace laughed and put a hand up to stop him.

"Oh—don't even get me started, if not for Ewan McGregor the whole thing would have fallen apart." Reid laughed and nodded.

"Agreed, _now _we're even." Grace gave a chuckle and helped Aydan off her lap as she got up from her seat. She excused herself and walked to the end of the table where the drinks were, refilling her cup. She had barely left when Aydan scrambled back up onto her seat and stared at Reid. This of course made Reid uncomfortable, seeing as he was one of those people easily spooked by children. The little boy on the other hand just watched the man for a moment, until finally he asked,

"Do you like Mommy?" Reid was taken aback by the astuteness of the small boy, though it hit him (much too late) that his mother was also considered a genius and therefore it wasn't a hard concept of the apple not falling far from the tree. Then again, small children had an uncanny ability of reading one's mind.

Or so he believed.

Reid leaned over, bending his tall frame so he and the boy were on the same level. The little boy stared at him with eyes that were perfect replicas of his mother's.

"Would you mind if I said yes?" the little boy shook his head no, vigorously. Aydan looked at him with wide eyes.

"Do you like her a lot?" he asked with a whisper. Reid gave a nod and asked quietly,

"Can you keep a secret?" the little boy nodded and leaned in. Reid smiled, seeing it wasn't so hard after all.

"I do like your mom a lot, I just don't know how to tell her." The little boy leaned back, man and boy looking at one another for another moment, quiet, until Aydan looked at the head of the table and yelled,

"_Mommy!_ Spencer really, really, really likes you." Reid's eyes closed, lips pressed together as the table became silent and everyone, including Grace, stared at Reid. Who was wishing he could melt straight into the ground. The little boy sensing he had completed his task, hopped of the chair and went to play with his toys. Spencer stopped him and looked at him, shaking his head.

"That was harsh little man. Next time we'll talk about what a secret is." Aydan shrugged and gave Reid a toothy smile, which the good doctor returned. He found himself unable to be angry with someone so small, especially one that had been through what Aydan had.

Reid didn't have a lot of time for repair control, but it didn't seem to matter. Everyone had gone back to talking and Grace came back to sit next to him, handing him a glass of lemonade that he downed in record speed. When he set the glass down he met Grace's gaze, somewhat embarrassed. She tried not to smile, knowing it would probably make him even _more_ nervous now that Aydan had managed to broadcast his thoughts to anyone of importance.

However, the endeavor failed, and her lips curved up into a smile and a laugh bubbled up until she couldn't contain it.

"So you really, really, really like me?" she asked. Seeing Reid's face was priceless, one of anxiousness at her reaction and one of resignation to the fact he had been outed by a four-year-old boy. Finally Reid gave in and looked at Grace, his face now genuine and caring.

"I really, really, really do." Grace smiled and planted a kiss on his cheek.

"Good, because I really, really, really like you too." Her words put Reid at ease, no more beating around the bush. Though he hadn't been blind to what they had said on back of the ambulance, and her actions tonight were clearly signs of her affection. Even with the evidence in his favor, Reid was still afraid he had read too much into it and that he would find himself very alone again, if he were to dive in, heart first with little regard to the consequences. Long distance relationships were hard enough, finding out that he was the only one trying to make it work was even worse. He shook his head in disbelief.

"How is it that I can talk to you, like I've never talked to anyone?" Grace gave him a crooked smile and leaned in so they were the only ones involved in the conversation.

"Because I know what it's like—to be different, to have a label slapped on that defines who I am, even if it isn't at all like me." Reid understood _that_ better than anyone. Having graduated from high school at age 12 and earned a PHD at a similarly young age, he knew people felt he was simply the anti-social genius that knew everything and couldn't get a date. Even though it was somewhat true, he had been marked as a loner and with that, he hadn't learned what to do when the opportune moment ran aground for him to meet a girl and form a romantic relationship.

"But-- but _you_ fit in much better than I do. You're brilliant, but you'd have to tell someone you're brilliant." Grace took Reid's hand in her own, tracing at his fingers, looking for the right words.

"I think you're the way you are, which is fine I might add, because you were told to embrace your intelligence and let people know that you're above average… But Spencer, you can _be_ above average and not let people label you—" Reid took in what she was saying, gripping her hand tightly. Grace continued.

"The only way I got through public high school, before Aydan was born, was because I didn't skip grades. It was hard for me sometimes because I could read the material once and never forget, or I could add two plus two a little faster than the others. But it gave me a chance to learn about people, observe them. No one needs to know from _you_ that you're a genius, they'll find out when you do something brilliant—like saving a little boy's life." Reid gave a half smile, it made sense—sometimes he was a little too forthcoming about what he knew, and as a profiler he should have known that people cared little about how high your IQ was and more of what kind of attitude you had, and what you did with your life. Grace put a hand to his face, her thumb running over the edge of his cheek.

"You're a good man Spencer, don't change." At that moment, he could have cared less about what was going on with the rest of the world. He felt like he belonged for a change and with that belonging with someone who understood him better than even his coworkers did. In just a few short days, Reid knew he had found something special. Neither of them was perfect, but to him, nothing was more perfect than the woman he was holding hands with and her little boy whom he had come to care for very much. It dawned on him though, that in less than 24 hours he would be returning to Quantico, leaving Grace behind. Having fallen for a girl in a different state before, Reid was no stranger to disappointment. This time was different though; he _wanted_ it to work and was in denial to see his time with her ending so quickly.

Grace saw the look on his face and knew what he was feeling. She was feeling it too.

"Hey…" she said softly, grabbing his attention, "if we want this to work, we'll make it work. We at least live on the same coast, that has to count for something." Reid gave her a half-hearted smile, but the thought didn't appear to be comforting him. Which led Grace to add another bit of information.

"According to some information, I've recently received," she said, her gaze redirecting to Gideon for a moment. Reid seeing this looked at a Gideon as well, the older man noticing the two of them and knowing he was somehow involved in the conversation, lifted his cup in a salute. Grace and Reid looked at one another again and she continued, "Apparently Quantico has a need for flower shops." Reid looked at her in surprise.

"You would move to Quantico?" Grace gave a slight lift to her shoulders and a look that said she was considering it.

"If this, as in us, turns into something more—than yes, I'd be willing, I have a few more semesters to finish first, but it's a possibility." Reid restrained his hopes a bit and wondered to himself what it would be like to have her move to Quantico to be with him. As he did, he remembered it wasn't just Grace who would be uprooted.

"What about Aydan? How do you think he'd react?" Grace smiled and answered almost immediately.

"I think Aydan has grown attached to you." She said pointing at the boy and his play area. It appeared Batman was having a deep conversation with the teddy bear, and the two could hear the little boy talking as he played.

"Dr. Spencer Reid, FBI." Spencer gave a surprised laugh and looked at Grace once more.

"Well then—" he said pulling her close, "let's make this work."

George Sand once said, "There is only one happiness in life, to love and be loved." For Reid, to love and be loved was something he could get used to.

**Fin.**


End file.
